Jones pushes table gaming

Mayor cites jobs potential, says city can’t miss chance


By Rusty Marks
Staff writer

Like a television evangelist, Mayor Danny Jones took the stage in front of the Rotary Club of Charleston on Friday to preach words of salvation.

And those words are table games.

“There is good and bad gambling,” Charleston’s mayor told a room full of Rotary members at the University of Charleston.

Regulated, centralized table gaming like that proposed at Tri-State Racetrack & Gaming Center will bring jobs, economic development and tourists to Kanawha County, Jones said. However, video lottery machines in the dozens of gambling parlors that currently dot Charleston and neighboring towns provide no public benefit, he said.

“The neighborhood machines don’t give us anything,” Jones said. “I’d go so far as to call them predators.”

Unlike Tri-State Racetrack, where 65 percent of the patrons come from out of state, neighborhood gambling parlors prey on local residents, many of whom can’t really afford to gamble, the mayor said.

Between wisecracks, humorous asides and flamboyant references to local politicians and newsmakers, Jones made the point that local voters and state officials can’t afford to pass up table gaming.

Kanawha County voters will decide Aug. 11 whether to allow Tri-State to add casino-style games to the facility, which already offers dog racing and video slots. Racetrack owners have promised a $250 million upgrade to the facility that includes a hotel, convention center and entertainment venue. They say the expansion will create 1,000 full-time jobs and hundreds of construction jobs.

For an area that fights for 10, 30 or 150 jobs at a time, Jones said, 1,000 jobs is a major promise.

Proponents of table gaming in Kanawha County believe adding casino games at Tri-State will bring tourists from out of state. Officials for Yeager Airport believe table gaming will increase air traffic to and from the area. And Jones said people who come to visit the racetrack will stay at local hotels and shop at local businesses.

Those against table games argue they can lead to crime, violence, suicide and drug abuse.

A 2004 study by the U.S. Department of Justice that compared people arrested in Las Vegas — where casino gambling is legal — and Des Moines, Iowa, found a higher percentage of compulsive gamblers in Las Vegas. Those arrested in Las Vegas also were more likely to steal or sell drugs to support their gambling habits, and more likely to abuse drugs or alcohol, the study suggests.

Jones said there are drawbacks to any industry. He believes, though, that the benefits of table gaming for local economic development outweigh the risks.

“It’s easy to be against something,” Jones told the crowd. “All you have to do is say no.

“If you have someplace else where the state can get this kind of money, I’d like to know what it is. If you know somewhere we can get 1,000 jobs, I’d like to know what it is.

“If you’ve got a quarter-billion investment in economic development, I need to know what it is. I’ll help you get it.”

Jones said 17,000 people a week already go to Tri-State Racetrack.

“If you vote no, there’s still going to be gambling out there,” he said. “There’s still going to be 17,000 people going there.”

He said state officials already rely on gambling for one-sixth of the state’s budget and that voters can’t afford to pass up table gaming.

“All you have to do is vote yes,” he said. “You don’t have to work there. You don’t have to go there.”

To contact staff writer Rusty Marks, call 348-1215.